


Talk (we need to)

by never_bloom_again



Series: Deserving of Love (Hotch/Rossi) [12]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Cute, Discussion, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Getting Together, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Suicide, It Isnt As Angsty As Those Tags Make It Sound, Light Angst, M/M, Pre-Slash, almost
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-23
Updated: 2020-05-23
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:21:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24334300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/never_bloom_again/pseuds/never_bloom_again
Summary: David and Aaron really need to talk.
Relationships: Aaron Hotchner/David Rossi
Series: Deserving of Love (Hotch/Rossi) [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1723459
Kudos: 52





	Talk (we need to)

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry it has been a while! I hope you enjoy this, I'm finally starting to reach the actual discussion!!

David didn’t know what to do. There he was, lying in bed with the man of his dreams - the man he literally spent most of his sleep dreaming about - with everything he wanted right in his grasp. And he had so nearly lost it all. Dave wanted to go and check what had happened in the study, as he hadn’t had a chance in the rush the last night, and wanted it to be clear before Aaron returned there, as well as gaining a better understanding of what had happened, why he had been just minutes off finding his best friend, the man he loved with a bullet in his brain.

He looked at the man in his arms, who looked so vulnerable yet peaceful as he slept, the pain of the days past having left his face. He looked nothing like the shadow of a man he had seen yesterday. As much as Dave wanted to follow his instinct from years of case work, to deduce what had happened till he had a clearer picture, what he wanted even more was to treasure the view of his old friend so calm and blissful, to ensure that Aaron got the calm, restful sleep that he both needed and deserved.

So he lay there, his arm slowly going numb from the weight of Aaron on top of it, until the man began to awaken drowsily, blinking softly as his eyes adjusted to the sunlight.

“Good morning,” Dave said in a dulcet tone. 

“Mornin’,” Aaron responded, his voice rough from sleep and his sobs from prior night. He sat up, with his back against the headboard.

The two men sat in silence for a moment, both cautious to bring up the events of the previous night, or even the days leading up to it. 

“I’m sorry.” The words barely broke the silence, almost too soft for anyone to hear. They took a moment to register, and Dave almost recoiled in shock, somewhat surprised to hear his friend sound so vulnerable. However, given all that had happened with Haley and his parents, it made sense that he would be so apologetic about his show of emotion.

“Aaron, you have nothing to apologise for. I’m the one who should be sorry. I’ve been so ignorant of all that you have been through recently. I should have been there to support you, but finding you like I did last night, to think if I had been a few minutes later -- It probably would have killed me.”

The room once again went silent, and after a moment, Dave turned his eyes back to Aaron, who had tears welling up in his eyes. He reached over to touch Aaron’s arm, giving silent permission to the man to let out what he felt, to say what he hadn’t been able to before.

“I’m sorry.” Aaron repeated. Dave was tempted to interrupt again, but had a feeling that he needed to just let him say what he had to. 

“I shouldn’t have left you the letter. I shouldn't have fallen for you in the first place. I’m sorry. You should go. We don’t need to talk about this.”

Dave sighed, knowing that his friend was going to blame himself, and the situation would be worse if he let things be, as asked.

“I can’t do that. Either you talk to me, or I talk to Strauss.”

That kicked Aaron into action, his mouth opening and closing a few times as he attempted to settle on the words he had to say.

“I just wanted to get it out. At first, I thought if I just told you, it would go away. And then I realised I ruined it. I ruined everything, the same way I ruined things with Haley,” he paused for a moment, the sadness quickly fading into anger, “is that enough for you? Can you go now? I have surely already humiliated myself enough! You don’t get to come here and act all upset out of a sense of obligation. Just go. Leave.”

Dave quickly recognised that his friend was just trying to regain the masculinity he felt he had lost by crying, by being emotional last night. As much as he was tempted to just yell back, he knew that if he wanted to make any progress, he would have to stay calm - and not be the asshole for a change.

“Aaron, stop. No, I will not leave. Have you ever even taken a minute to think that maybe things aren’t all as dire as you seem to believe? We clearly need to talk about your insecurities, and we can talk about mine too, but first, you need to get your head screwed on right and we need to work out what the hell is going on.”

As he spoke, Dave watched the anger slowly leave the man’s body. 

“Okay then. Let’s talk.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hopefully (if my computer is nice to me) I will update pretty soon! But I also have something else in the works that is delaying it a bit (Moreid fans - stay alert!)
> 
> Comments and Kudos mean the world to me, and I hope you liked it!!


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